Back From the Brink
by Shinkeru
Summary: A war with Team Rocket, Team Aqua, and Team Magma has consumed the regions of Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, and Sinnoh.  With their lives on the line, the resistance and their Pokémon must fight with everything they have to protect their freedom.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Pokémon, the games, the manga, the anime, or anything that could be maybe owned by the Pokémon franchise. I'm not that awesome. Rats.

- . - . - . -

Silver awoke to the loud ringing of his Pokégear. He rolled over and nearly fell off the couch he'd been sleeping on. He caught sight of a digital clock across the pitch-black room and groaned.

"Who the hell is calling me at 2:30 in the morning?" Silver grumbled, feeling around for his Pokégear. He saw the illuminated screen and exhaled his annoyance. He flipped it open and held the Pokégear up to his ear. "You'd better have a damn good reason for calling me in the middle of the night."

"Hi, sleeping beauty," Gold answered, laughing. Silver held the device a good six inches from his ear; he could still hear Gold's unusually loud voice. "Sorry I woke you."

"This is the part where you explain why you're calling after two in the morning."

"You sure are cranky when people wake you up, aren't ya, Silver?" Gold laughed again.

"I'm hanging up," Silver said.

"No, wait, wait!" Gold said quickly. "Sorry. I was wondering if you got a weird letter in the past couple days?"

Silver rolled onto his back and covered his eyes with his free hand. "You're seriously calling to ask if I've checked my mail?"

"Look, you'd call too, Silver," Gold said, more quietly. "It's. . . . Just, are you at your house?"

"Yeah," Silver answered. He'd been visiting Blue in Kanto, and had gotten back to his most-used secret base in Johto only a few hours ago. "I got here last night."

"Can you. . . . Can you just go and look through your mail? You'll know the letter if you have it," Gold requested. He sounded distressed. Now that Silver thought about it, Gold had sounded tense since the call had begun.

"I hate you," Silver informed Gold, not moving. "Can't I just wait til morning?"

"Can you just do this for me?" Gold asked. "It'll take two seconds. If it's not there, you can come over and kick my ass when it's light."

"I'll do that anyway," Silver promised. He sat up and groaned. "Remind me why you couldn't have waited to call me later?"

"You'll see," Gold answered mysteriously. Silver stood and stretched before walking to the entrance to his secret base, where he'd put the three letters he'd received while he'd been in Kanto on an end table.

"Silver, you do know you can come and stay at my place, right?" Gold said conversationally. Silver rolled his eyes. Gold made that offer about twelve times a week. "You could have an actual bed. And actual food."

"Leave it alone, Gold," Silver said. "We've had this conversation about a trillion times. And I do eat real food. Okay, mail I have. . . . Letter from Crystal, letter from you – why are you sending me mail? – and. . . Weird."

The last envelope had no return address, just 'SILVER' scrawled in all caps on the front.

"Just a letter that says your name on it, right?"

"Yeah," Silver mumbled. He dropped the letters from his friends and ripped the final envelope open and began to read, using the light from his Pokégear.

_Dragon's Den_

_July 17th_

_I hope to see you there._

"What the – ?" Silver said, flipping the paper over to see if there was any more written on the back. There wasn't.

"Weird, huh?" Gold said. Silver nodded, forgetting that Gold couldn't see him. "Crystal got one too. You know if Blue or any of the others got 'em?"

"I dunno. Not while I was over there at least," Silver said slowly. He walked back to his couch and flipped a light on, which stung his eyes. "What about the Hoenn people? Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald? They get 'em?"

"Chris is gonna call Sapphire in the morning and ask."

"So you guys don't know who it's from?" Silver asked, rereading the letter.

"No idea," Gold replied. "We have guesses, but we only had the letter to go on. And that didn't give us much."

"No," Silver agreed. "It doesn't. Well, are you going to this meeting thing?"

"Chris thinks it's stupid to go. Says it could be a trap, or something."

"She's right," Silver said. "It could. But I'm going."

"I'm going with you, then," Gold said. Silver expected as much, and didn't protest.

"I'll call Blue to see if they got the letter in Kanto," Silver decided. "I'll come over when it's light out, and we can make plans. The 17th is only a few days away."

"Okay," Gold said. "See ya."

Silver hung up, and immediately speed dialed Blue. _Pick up, pick up, pick up, _Silver thought.

"Hello?" Blue answered tiredly.

"Blue, hi," Silver said quickly. "It's me."

"Silver?" Blue asked.

"Yeah. Sorry to call so late, I know you hate being woken up in the middle of the night, but –"

"You didn't wake me up," Blue interrupted. "I was up, and I'm with Red and Yellow at Green's place."

"Why?" Silver asked, confused, diverted from his purpose.

"Well, we all got this really weird letter. . . . I was going to call you in the morning to ask if you got one, too."

"Yeah, Gold and Chris and I all got them," Silver said. "That's why I was calling, actually."

"You did – _hey_!" Blue shouted. Someone had grabbed her Pokégear from her.

"Hey, Silver, it's Red," Red said very quickly. "You're going to this meeting, right?"

"Yes," Silver answered. "Gold is, too. Crystal thinks it could be a trap, though."

"So does Green," Red sighed. "But a trap for what? Team Rocket's finished, and so are those other two teams from Hoenn that Ruby and Sapphire finished off. Who could be trying to trap us?"

"I dunno. But I'm going."

"Me too, kid. I'll see you there."

- . - . - . -

On the 16th of July, all ten of the Pokédex Holders met at Gold's house in Littleroot Town. They spent the entire night arguing about whether or not they should go to Blackthorn City the next day. Ultimately, the seven Dex Holders intent on going won over the three dead-set against going. They flew the short distance from Littleroot to Blackthorn and arrived at the Dragon's Den a few minutes after nine o'clock. There was an elderly man outside the entrance who refused to let them in until they presented their letters.

They entered the gargantuan cave with trepidation. Not far inside the cave stood a tall redhead in a black cloak, leaning against a Dragonair sculpture.

"Lance!" Yellow and Silver exclaimed. Their eight friends looked at them; many of them had never seen this person before in their life. Lance smiled slightly.

"Silver, Yellow," Lance greeted, inclining his head. "It's been too long."

"It hasn't been long enough," Yellow said angrily. Her friends frowned. They'd never heard Yellow talk like this. Lance laughed softly.

"Ah, I forgot how you see me. Pure evil, yes?" Lance said dryly. Yellow glared at him. "Thank you all for coming. . . I assume you got my letters."

"_You_ sent them?" Silver asked. "Why didn't you sign them?"

"If they'd fallen into the wrong hands, I couldn't be implicated in what's about to happen. Not before necessary," Lance sighed. "Besides, if I had signed them, Yellow wouldn't have come. Nor would many of you, I'm sure. She's quite convincing. Now, if you would. . ."

Lance led the way through the shadowy cavern. Red pulled Yellow along; it was obvious that she didn't want to follow him. The rest of the Dex Holders were whispering their speculations as they trailed after the Dragon Master. Suddenly, Lance stopped and turned to face them.

"What I am about to tell the ten of you cannot leave this cave until the time is right," Lance said in a tone of deadly quiet. "If it does, it is very likely that we will all be killed before we can help."

Less than an hour later, eleven people exited the Dragon's Den, each with a different purpose, but all determined to complete their tasks before it was too late.

- . - . - . - . - . - . - . -


	2. Are You In?

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Pokémon, or anything affiliated with Pokémon. It's shocking, right?

When he woke up that morning, Ash Ketchum had had no idea that his life would change unalterably by the end of the day. His 18-month stay in the Sevii Islands was ending today; he was taking the ferry back to Kanto.

"You ready to get back to civilization, little buddy?" Ash asked his Pikachu and they walked up the gangplank. Pikachu nodded happily. Their year-and-a-half long training excursion had been rigorous, and Ash and his Pokémon were much stronger than they'd been when they'd arrived. It would be a nice change of pace to get back to civilization. Their ferry was scheduled to arrive in Pallet Town at 7:30 that evening.

"Sir," a sailor stopped Ash as he walked onto the boat a few minutes before noon. Ash turned to look at him. "Are you quite sure you want to go to Kanto?"

Ash frowned slightly. What an odd question. "Of course I'm sure," Ash said confidently. "It's time to go home."

The sailor looked at him for a while longer before hesitantly saying, "I suppose a boy of your age. . . How old are you?"

"I'm sixteen," Ash answered. "As of last week. I've been training for a while in the Sevii Islands."

"Mmm. I guess you'll be alright, then," the sailor said dubiously. Ash raised his eyebrows ever so slightly.

"What's wrong with Kanto?" Ash asked. The sailor looked uncomfortable.

"Bill! Get over here! We've got cargo to load," another sailor called. The man Ash had been talking to, Bill, grimaced at Ash before hurrying over to his friend.

Ash watched him go, utterly confused. "That sure was weird, huh, Pikachu?"

"Pika," Pikachu replied. When a gust of wind blew across the deck, the little electric mouse cocked its head as though listening to something. Pikachu's eyes widened, and he looked worried.

"You alright?" Ash asked quietly. Pikachu nodded. There was no reason to get worried needlessly.

"Attention, passengers," a scratchy voice spoke oven an intercom. "Please take your seats, as we will be departing momentarily."

As he walked towards a small group of chairs inside, Ash realized that he was the only passenger, not counting the sailors that were clearly working.

_Okay. What is going on here? The ferry was totally packed when I was going to the Sevii_ _Islands. Why's it totally empty now? _Ash wondered as he sat down. As the man over the intercom promised, the ferryboat lurched into motion mere minutes after Ash had sat down. _Oh well. It's seven hours til I'm home._

- . - . - . -

The ferry ride went without a hitch until a little after 6:30 PM. Ash and Pikachu had dozed most of the time, both awakening when they heard shouts and felt the boat rocking.

"Shit! Move, Jack - it's the Hyper Beam!"

Ash opened his eyes sleepily. It was very dark. Too dark; it wasn't supposed to be this dark at 6 in Kanto, even at this time of year. Pikachu tugged on his sleeve and leaped off of the bench and ran for the door that lead to the deck. Ash stood and quickly followed.

The scene on the deck was one of utter chaos. It was pouring rain, and there were flashes of light that looked a lot like Hyper Beam attacks. Ash was slowly processing when the boat gave a lurch, sending Ash flying into the cold metal railing of the ship.

"Ouch," Ash groaned, massaging his head. He looked around, more alert. The sailors all had out Pokémon and were attempting to battle six enormous Gyarados. "Holy. . . Okay, Pikachu, let's get in this! Use Thunder!"

Pikachu charged for a moment before releasing a powerful Thunder attack on the nearest Gyarados. The Gyarados that Pikachu had hit just barely avoided fainting. A few sailors looked around and shouted a mixture of thanks and warnings. Ash's practiced hands flew to his waist where the rest of his Pokémon were kept. He pulled off five Pokéballs and threw them all out at once. In several flashes of bright red light, a Torterra, an Infernape, a Staraptor, a Floatzel, and a Gabite appeared.

"All right - let's put our Sevii Island Training to the test!" Ash yelled. "Torterra, use Leaf Storm! Infernape, Mach Punch! Staraptor, use Brave Bird! Floatzel, Sonicboom! And Gabite, use Dragon Claw! Pikachu, use your Thunderbolt. But be careful not to hit any of us."

Each of his Pokémon targeted a separate Gyarados and unleashed their attacks. The Gyarados that Pikachu had previously attacked went down immediately. And though Ash's Pokémon were now far stronger than they'd ever been and their attacks were powerful, these Gyarados were exceptionally strong and clearly owned by someone. The remaining five quickly shook off Ash's Pokémons' attacks and, in unison, used Dragon Rage.

Ash frowned. _Why are these obviously powerful Gyarados only using Dragon Rage? Maybe. . . . Maybe their trainer's not here, and they're acting out of instinct? _Ash noticed that all of the sailors had recalled their Pokémon and had fled from the deck. He watched, incredulously, and they ran to the lifeboats and lowered them into the water.

"Sorry, kid!" someone yelled. Ash recognized the sailor that had talked to him earlier. "We just can't handle this level of battle."

Ash shook his head and didn't bother answering. He turned back to his battle; his Pokémon had taken damage from the Dragon Rage, but not enough to affect their battling.

Ash ordered all of his Pokémon to use their attacks again.

"Alright, everyone – one more time! Leaf Storm, Mach Punch, Brave Bird, Sonicboom, Dragon Claw, and Thunderbolt!" His Pokémon obeyed, and this round of attacks seemed to affect the Gyarados significantly. They retaliated this time out of sync - each using different attacks: Crunch, Twister, Aqua Tail, Hydro Pump, and Thrash.

"Aw, crap," Ash muttered. Sure, it was good that the Gyarados were breaking ranks, but this ferryboat couldn't take any more damage. So Ash would have to save the boat before countering. "Staraptor! Use Whirlwind to counter that Twister! Stop it from hitting the boat. Floatzel, use Aqua Jet on that Aqua Tail! Torterra, use a close-range Leaf Storm on that Gyarados that's trying to bite the boat. Infernape, Close Combat on the Gyarados using Thrash! Don't let it touch the boat. Pikachu, use your Thunderbolt on that Hydro Pump – maybe you can affect all of the other Gyarados. Gabite, after Torterra uses Leaf Storm, use Dragon Claw on that Gyarados!"

Only two of the Gyarados stayed up this time, and the boat didn't get hit, but Ash's Pokémon had taken a lot of damage. And the rain was really taking its toll on both Gabite and Infernape, who were weakened by water. Ash pulled two Pokéballs off of his waist.

"Gabite! Infernape! Return!" The two Pokémon disappeared in two flashes of red light. "All right, the rest of you – Staraptor, Floatzel, Torterra, Pikachu – it's up to you now. You can do this! Just a little bit more."

His Pokémon looks exhausted, but determined. _I shouldn't use Pikachu's Thunderbolt again, _Ash thought quickly. _The rain would just make it hit all of us at this point. _"Just two more, stay with it! Torterra, use Leaf Storm again. And Floatzel and Staraptor, use Sonicboom and Aerial Ace."

The final Gyarados collapsed into the surf, and Ash sighed in relief.

"Great job, guys!" Ash praised his Pokémon as he recalled them to their Pokéballs. "Take a nice long rest. I'll get you all healed up when we get home. And thanks, Pikachu. You were great."

Ash scratched Pikachu behind the ears. _Now what?_ Ash wondered. _I'm in the middle of who-knows-where, with weakened __Pok__émon_ _and I don't know how to steer a boat. . . ._

"That was nice, Kid," a voice came out of nowhere. Ash whirled around and searched for the source through the pouring rain. He couldn't find anyone.

"Who's there?" Ash called, sounding braver than he felt. At this point, he didn't think he'd be able to do anything in a battle.

"Easy. I'm right here," the voice responded. A woman jumped out of the sky and pulled out a Pokéball. "Honchkrow! Return."

She turned to look at Ash and smiled. She was stunningly beautiful, despite the fact that the rain was plastering her hair to her head and her clothes to her body. Her hair was long and silvery-blonde, and her eyes were a very disturbing shade of purple.

"You're pretty good," the woman said, eyeing him contemplatively.

"Uh. . . Thanks," Ash responded. "It was really my Pokémon, though."

"What the hell are you doing?" another voice came from behind Ash. He spun around and found himself face-to-face with a vaguely familiar man. He had dark red hair, made darker by the rain, and a long black cape. He didn't even look at Ash, just straight past him to the woman. "I told you not to come down here, didn't I?"

"You were just going to let all this talent pass you by?" the woman laughed. "Please. You want him, too."

Ash frowned, confused, and watched as the man crossed his arms and looked annoyed.

"It doesn't matter, Karen. He's just a kid."

"That didn't stop you before, did it, Lance?" the woman, Karen, shot back.

"Karen," the man, Lance, said tiredly, "I –"

"Uh. . . Mind if I cut in?" Ash interrupted. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"You're a gifted trainer, Kid," Karen said, turning her gaze from the man to the boy.

"Thanks," Ash said again. "I'm flattered that you think so. But what are you talking about? It's really creeping me out."

"Where did this boat come from?" Lance asked, ignoring Ash's question completely.

"The Sevii Islands," Ash answered automatically. Karen and Lance exchanged a loaded glance.

"What's your name?" Karen asked.

"I'm Ash Ketchum, and I'm from Pallet Town."

"Pleasure. We need to get going, Karen. They shouldn't have attacked a Sevii ship," Lance said as he pulled out a Pokéball. "We need to alert the others and come up with a new plan. They're changing their tactics. It was nice to meet you, boy, but we have to go –"

"Hold on just a second," Ash said. "Who are 'they,' and why were you talking about 'wanting me' before?"

"It's none of your concern," Lance said harshly. Ash looked surprised. "Good job at fighting the Gyarados. If you know what's good for you, you'll go back to the Sevii Islands. I don't even know why you were coming back."

"Lance. . . ," Karen said slowly, laying a hand on Ash's shoulder. "Maybe he can help us."

Ash didn't say anything as he waited for Lance to answer.

"Karen, there's already too many involved in this," Lance said. His whole tone had changed: he sounded exhausted and very, very sad. "Too many have died already, and he's just a kid. It isn't fair. This whole goddamn situation isn't fair, but that doesn't mean that we have to drag innocent kids into this when they don't need to be."

"What's going on?" Ash asked. Karen and Lance looked at him.

"Y-you mean. . .," Karen said, sounding utterly shocked. "You mean you don't know?"

"Know what?" Ash asked nervously. Karen and Lance exchanged a long look. Lance let out another sigh.

"But how is that even possible?" Karen asked incredulously. "Everyone's involved in this! From Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, hell, even Sinnoh! How –?"

"I've been in the Sevii Islands for the past eighteen months."

Karen's mouth formed an O and Lance nodded slowly.

"First, kid –"

"It's Ash."

"Okay. Ash, then. First we need to know if we can trust you. . . ," Lance said. "If you were given a choice between independence and sovereignty, which would you choose?"

"What kind of question is that?" Ash asked, confused. It was probably the weirdest question he'd ever been asked, but both Lance (why did he recognize him?) and Karen seemed to put a lot on his response. "Uh. . . I guess I'd choose the freedom one."

"Why?" Karen asked flatly, her face impassive.

"Well, I guess 'cause. . . Sovereignty is like. . . a dictatorship, right?" Ash said. "And if I picked that one, it'd be like there were people under my control. Like slaves, I guess. And I know that I wouldn't want that kind of power; that much power means a lot of responsibility... And I know that if the situation were reversed, I wouldn't want to be the controlled one."

Lance and Karen exchanged another look. Ash waited nervously for their response.

"Good answer, Kiddo," Karen said, smiling again. "C'mon, we can't talk freely here."

"We'll go back to headquarters," Lance muttered, pulling out his Pokégear. "I'll call ahead. . . Hey, Lorelei? Lance. We're returning to headquarters. Should be there within the hour, but be prepared anyways. No. . . No, I know I don't need to tell you that, but I'm going to anyways. Yes. Okay. Out."

Lance returned his Pokégear to his pocket and looked at Karen and Ash. Ash was still trying to place the man. He knew the name and he recognized him, but there was still something. . .

"Your Staraptor up to make a long trip?" Lance asked Ash.

"Uh," Ash said brilliantly. He released Staraptor from her Pokéball. "She seems alright, but how far is it?"

"Far," Karen answered mysteriously. "But from what I saw of that battle, your Staraptor is tough. She'll make it."

"We're wasting time," Lance said impatiently. "Karen, the boy doesn't know anything yet, but you know better. We can't be out in the open for too long."

"I know that," Karen snapped. "God, Lance, this whole situation has sucked all the fun out of you."

Lance glared at her. Karen winked and released her Honchkrow and leapt neatly onto its back. "C'mon, let's go home."

Karen and Honchkrow disappeared into the darkness. Lance shook his head and threw the Pokéball he'd been holding for a while into the air, and a Dragonite appeared in a flash of red light. Ash recognized that Dragonite, too.

"Hey!" Ash exclaimed. Lance looked curiously at him. "I know why you seem so familiar to me – you're Lance the Dragon Master!"

"Yes," Lance agreed hesitantly. "I am."

"We met a few years back in Johto," Ash said. "Don't you remember me? I was there when you caught a Gyarados."

"I'm sorry, I don't recall," Lance said. Ash looked disappointed. Lance smiled apologetically. "Now, stay close to me. And be prepared to fight at any time."

Ash and Lance climbed onto the backs of their respective Pokémon, and took flight. Ash's Staraptor followed Lance's Dragonite closely as they flew through the cloudy, rain-filled sky.


	3. Introductions

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Pokémon. Still.

- . - . - . -

Karen hadn't been lying – it _was_ far. They'd been flying for what felt like hours (though in reality it had barely been one hour) when Ash felt Staraptor shift into a descent. Ash leaned back to keep from falling off and tightened his grip on Pikachu. Seconds after Ash felt the descent, he saw ground rushing up to meet him. He nearly cried out in alarm, but caught himself just in time.

"Ride alright for you, Kid?" Karen asked him. Ash glanced down and saw her standing beside his Staraptor, her hand held out to help him dismount. Ash grinned at her and took her hand gratefully.

"It was okay," Ash answered her question when his feet were firmly on the ground. He retrieved Staraptor's Pokéball and recalled her. "Thanks, Staraptor. You were great. Staraptor's probably totally wiped now, though."

"No problem there," Karen assured him. "You can heal your Pokémon the second we get inside."

"Where are we?" Ash asked her, glancing around. All he could see was darkness.

"Inside," Lance said harshly, pushing past Karen and Ash. Karen rolled her eyes, but followed Lance through the darkness. Ash followed her, still clutching Pikachu. Before long, they came to a dark building's door. Lance typed a code into a keypad by the door and the door slid open, revealing a red-haired woman Ash remembered meeting in the Orange Islands with Misty and Tracy.

"Lance," Lorelei said, relieved. "Karen. . . You're both okay. . . ."

She broke off when her eyes fell upon Ash. "You picked up a stray. Who's the kid?"

"My name is Ash Ketchum," Ash stated.

"He's on our side," Karen said succinctly. Lance shook his head.

"You don't know that yet," Lance corrected her, clearly annoyed. "He doesn't even know what's going on yet."

"What?" Lorelei said, shocked. "He doesn't _know_? How is that even possible? Has he been living under a rock for the past year and a half?"

"Sevii Islands," Karen informed her. Lorelei nodded in understanding.

"Well, welcome," Lorelei said to Ash. "Lance, Karen. . . We've got a meeting that started ten minutes ago. I left to wait for you two. It's in the conference room. Be quick when you fill him in."

Lorelei disappeared quickly down the brightly lit corridor.

"We really do need to hurry," Karen said, picking up the pace as she followed after Lorelei. "So, quick, Kid. You ever heard of Team Rocket?"

"Yes."

"Team Aqua? Team Magma?" Karen probed.

"Yes and yes," Ash answered. "Why?"

"What do you think of them?" Karen continued. Lance sighed and rolled his eyes.

"They're disgusting," Ash said, making a face. "They use and abuse Pokémon to achieve evil. That's wrong."

"You're right," Lance chimed in. "Pokémon should be honored."

"Yeah, and you take that philosophy a little to far," Karen said snidely. Lance glared at her.

"Don't even start with me, Karen," Lance ordered. He turned his attention back to Ash. "So, you would never join them, I presume?"

"Never," Ash spat. Lance and Karen nodded approvingly. "But. . . From what I know of Team Rocket. . . It's basically just a group of pathetic trainers, right? And that's whatever's left. I heard Team Rocket was defeated for good. They're not really dangerous. Are they?"

"Whatever it was, Team Rocket's powerful now," Karen said darkly. "Team Aqua and Team Magma – well, what's left of them after Ruby and Sapphire finished with them – have joined forces with Team Rocket. That was about two years ago, but it was kept quiet for a while. They kept their whole operation very quiet for about eight months. . . Then all hell broke loose."

_What's Ruby and Sapphire?_ Ash wondered. He wanted to ask, but felt it would be better not to interrupt.

"All of Kanto, Johto, Hoenn have been engaged in open warfare since then," Lance continued. "Even parts of Sinnoh. Basically, it's their goal to rule the world, and enslave –"

"Or kill," Karen inserted.

" – anyone that stands in their way."

"That's. . . horrible," Ash whispered.

"Yes, it is," Lance agreed. "But we should be glad the remains of Team Galactic didn't join up. Then we'd be worried on a universal level, if you know what I mean."

They rounded a corner and came into what looked like a reception hall. In the center of the room was an enormous stone fountain with a Dewgong, a Hitmonlee, a Gengar, and a Dragonair united, spilling water. Karen noticed Ash's looking at the fountain and paused.

"We're at the original headquarters for the Kanto Elite Four. The Pokémon represent the four elite trainers. Dewgong for Lorelei, the Ice-type trainer. Hitmonlee for Bruno. He's at the meeting we're headed to. Dragonair for Lance, the Dragon Master. And. . . Well. . . ," Karen broke off and looked awkwardly at Lance.

"Gengar for Agatha," Lance said shortly, brushing past the statue. "She's on the other side."

"But. . . But she was in the Elite Four!" Ash protested. "How can she have – ?"

"Agatha was always power-hungry," Lance said matter of factly. "They made her an offer she couldn't refuse."

Ash really couldn't tell if Lance was angry or simply sad about that.

"That's what really makes this so horrible," Karen said softly as they continued through the large room and down another hallway. "People you know and trust can betray you for the other side. The side of evil. My best friend. . . I knew him since we were just kids. . . he left for them. And I know why he did it. . . But that doesn't make it hurt less. You never really know where to turn, who to trust. It's created a delicate balance that can be disturbed by the slightest decision."

"Yes," Lance said with finality, closing the subject. He continued walking down the deserted hallway. It was very strange to Ash that they hadn't met another person yet. "So, Ash, do you want to fight with us?"

"Of course I do!" Ash said decisively.

"I know I was all for it before," Karen interrupted. Ash glanced at her. "But you really want to think about this, Kid. Once you're in, you're in. It's not something you want to do lightly."

"I don't need to think. This kind of thing is automatic. It's for the Pokémon. And I'll do everything I can to protect them, and the freedom of my friends."

"We can use more people like you," Lance sighed. "We're glad to have you." Something clicked for Ash.

"So is that what you guys meant before?" Ash asked. Karen and Lance stared at him blankly. "When you said you 'wanted' me?"

"Oh!" Karen laughed. "Yes, that's what I meant."

"Good, 'cause I was really freaked out by that," Ash grinned.

Lance stopped before rounding the next corner. Ash could finally hear the sounds of other people. He could hear talking, laughing even, and the loud, strange sound of things colliding. "Looks like you're about to meet the Dex Holders. Ash, we'll have to leave you with them. Karen and I are already late. Besides, the Dex Holders are very much part of this cause. They can help you get adjusted, so to speak."

"Okay," Ash said easily. He'd never had problems with meeting new people. Lance and Karen rounded the corner into a kind of entertainment room, and Ash followed them closely. There were ten people in the room, and many of them looked up when the trio entered.

The room was walled with filled bookshelves. There were four plush sofas that surrounded a coffee table. A plasma TV was hung on the only wall devoid of bookshelves. Behind one of the sofas, there was a pool table (_That explains the weird sound, _Ash thought.), where many of the people were congregated. A boy who looked a lot like Ash, but several years older, stood by the pool table, leaning on a pool cue like it was a crutch. He flicked his head in Ash's direction. Another boy who could only be Gary Oak stood beside him, twirling the pool cue through his fingers. He was looking intently at Ash. Another boy with dark hair was leaning on the pool table, aiming at the cue ball with his own pool cue. He was the only one that hadn't looked up when Ash, Lance, and Karen walked in. A short boy with elaborately styled blonde hair stood beside the table, elbows perched on the edges, chin resting in his hands, and had been watching the game. He was now looking directly at Ash. A pretty girl with long blonde hair tied back in a ponytail was sitting on a stool near the pool table. She too, had been watching the game, but now she was watching Ash. A girl with black hair tied in pigtails sat beside her. She also was looking at Ash. Ash's eyes left the pool table and people surrounding it and traveled to the sofas before it. A girl with long brown hair lay on her stomach and her hand was hovering over the magazine she'd been flipping through. Her eyes burned into Ash's, so his gaze flicked to the next sofa, where a person (Ash couldn't tell if it was a boy or a girl from this angle) lay asleep. One arm drooped lazily to the floor, and the person's bare feet were in the lap of a boy that was wearing a strange white hat. His hands were busy with something that looked like sewing. His dark red eyes met Ash's, and Ash nodded quickly before glancing at the final person in the room. A boy with long red hair and silvery-grey eyes sat on another sofa and held a heavy book in his lap.

"Dex Holders, meet Ash Ketchum," Lance said as he moved away through the room, Karen on his heels. "Blue, you like to talk, you can handle the intros."

"Play nice, kiddies," Karen's singsong voice drifted back down the hall as she and Lance disappeared.

"How'd I get the reputation of liking to talk?" asked the girl with long brown hair who'd been reading the magazine as she sat up.

"Maybe because you like to talk?" Gary snorted. "Obnoxious girl."

"Don't talk to her like that," the red-haired boy snapped.

"Chill out you guys," the pretty blonde girl said, smiling at Ash. "You're scaring him."

"Right," Blue said, standing and walking over to Ash. She smiled flirtatiously at him as she said, "Hi, Ash. My name's Blue."

"H-hi, Blue," Ash stammered. She grinned at him again and turned to face the others (many of whom were laughing at Ash's response to Blue's antics).

"Kanto Dex Holders first!" Blue decided, and she clapped her hands once. She threaded her arm through Ash's and led him to the nearest sofa. "Make yourself comfortable, this could take a while."

Ash was visibly blushing as Blue sauntered away to stand beside the pool table.

"This is Red," Blue said, pointing at the boy who looked similar to Ash. "You two look freakishly alike."

"Thanks, Captain Obvious," Red said. He waved at Ash. "Hi, Ash. It's nice to meet you. Is your Pikachu okay? He looks totally wiped out."

"Oh," Ash said lamely, looking at Pikachu. "Yeah, he's okay. We had a fight with a pack of Gyarados before we came here. I haven't gotten the chance to heal any of my Pokémon yet."

"I can help you with that," the pretty blonde girl said, standing up. Ash cocked his head.

"Ash, meet Yellow," Blue said. "She's a bit of an anomaly. Kinda like Lance. . . I wonder why he didn't help?"

"He's probably just stressed out," Yellow said logically as she walked up to Ash. "Do you mind?"

Ash shook his head. Yellow laid a hand on Pikachu. Pikachu glowed, and when Yellow removed her hand, he was completely healed. "What – ?" Ash said in wonder as Pikachu hopped happily into Yellow's arms.

"She was gifted by the Viridian Forest," Red explained, smiling at Yellow. "She can read the thoughts of Pokémon, heal them, you name it. She's got a way with Pikachus, though. My Pika just loves her."

"You've got a Pikachu, too?" Ash asked interestedly.

"Yeah, I –"

"Okay, Ash and Red, you can bond over your mutual Hey-I-Have-A-Pikachu-ness later," Blue interrupted. "And Yellow and ChuChu can join that party. However, moving on. . ."

Red and Yellow both shook their heads at Blue. Red rolled his eyes. Apparently this kind of behavior was commonplace for Blue.

"Now you've got me, Red, and Yellow for the Kanto Dex Holders. But there's one more," Blue said. She pointed over to Gary. "That's Green."

"What?" Ash asked. It really sounded as though Blue had just called Gary 'Green.'

"What?" Blue countered. She slipped her arm through Green's. "This big hunk of sexy is Green Oak."

The redhead boy scowled over at the pair of them. Green raised a hand in greeting.

"Huh. Green?" Ash studied the boy carefully, though perhaps 'man' was a more appropriate description. The resemblance was definitely there, but this man _did_ look older, more mature. "Sorry, I guess you just look freakishly like a friend of mine."

"Gary Oak, right?" Green asked. Ash nodded. "He's my cousin. No one knows why we look so alike, but. . . Oh well. I'm four years older, but people still confuse us."

"You're twenty?" Ash asked. Green nodded.

"Hmm, I guess I should do ages too," Blue mused. "Okay, starting over. I'm Blue. I'm twenty-one. Yellow's eighteen. Red and Green are both twenty. That concludes the Kanto Dex Holders. . . On to Johto!"

Blue started to walk away from the pool table, when a loud _crack!_ made her spin around. She turned in time to see the dark-haired boy straighten up, laughing.

"I am _so_ skilled. I just go the four and six balls in," he gloated. Red and Green glanced down at the pool table. "Red, you suck. You're almost out of the game."

"Aw, no," Red groaned. Green shook his head.

"I don't even know why you agreed to play, Red," Green commented. "You're a terrible pool player. Besides, they don't call this game 'Cutthroat' for nothing."

Ash kept looking at the dark-haired kid, who was still laughing. Blue sighed theatrically.

"Well, I was going to start with my favorite kid from Johto, but it would appear that Gold needs the spotlight right now," Blue said. She pointed at the boy with dark hair. "That annoying little critter is Gold. He's seventeen, and he's a compulsive gambler. Unless you want to lose everything you own, don't bet him anything."

"Hey, Blue, what's with that? I thought we were tight!" Gold crowed, slinging an arm over her shoulder. Blue laughed and ducked out of the embrace. Again, the redhead scowled over at the pool table. At Gold, specifically. "Yo, Ash. I'm Gold."

"Hi," Ash grinned.

"All right, all right, Gold, now shut up and play your game," Blue said, walking over to where Yellow and the pigtailed girl were sitting. "Ash, this is Crystal. She's also seventeen."

"You can call me Chris is you want to," Crystal offered, waving her fingers at him.

"Or super serious girl," Gold inserted, once again bent over the pool table. Crystal frowned at him.

"I liked you better when you weren't paying attention to the introductions," Crystal informed Gold. Gold shrugged.

"Okay, Ash," Blue called from behind the sofa where the redhead sat, recalling Ash's attention. "I was going to start with my favorite Johto kid, but instead I get to end with him, which is fine by me. Not that I don't love you, Chris, 'cause I do."

"And what about me?" Gold said indignantly. Blue shrugged.

"What about you?" Blue asked. She winked at Gold, then laid her hand on the redhead boy's shoulder. "Ash, this is Silver. He's seventeen as well."

"Hello," Silver said quietly. It was hard to see his face now, because he'd pulled the hood of a black sweatshirt with three sliver slashes emblazoned on the front over his head.

"Heya," Ash said. Silver nodded and looked back down at the book in his lap.

"Don't take it personal, Ash," Gold called. "He gets less talkative the longer you know him."

Silver calmly laid his book aside, reached over to the coffee table, picked up the TV's remote control, and chucked it at Gold's head. It connected with a loud crack.

"Ow! Shit, Silver!" Gold cried, rubbing his forehead. The room exploded in laughter. "You're all traitors. I could be seriously injured here."

"Nah, there was nothing in there to injure in the first place," Crystal giggled. Gold grinned at her, and she blushed.

"On to Hoenn," Blue announced. She pointed at the blond boy near the pool table. "That little blonde cutie over there next to Green is Emerald. He's fifteen." Emerald waved his long sleeves at Ash, who waved back.

Blue then walked to stand behind the sofa that held the sewing boy and the sleeping person. "This little guy –"

"Little?" the boy said, not looking up from his sewing. "I resent that, Blue."

"Fine, then. This dashing, mature man is Ruby," Blue said. Ruby nodded in approval. "He's sixteen, and he's Norman's son. Y'know, the Petalburg Gym Leader?"

"You are?" Ash asked in surprise. Ruby nodded, eyes still fixed on the fabric in his lap. "I never knew May and Max had an older brother?"

"Oh," Ruby said. He looked up from his sewing. "Not really. I mean, older half-brother, I guess. My parents got married, had me, and got divorced when I was two. Dad married Caroline almost right away, and then May and Max were born. I don't know them very well, though."

"Oh," Ash said. "They never mentioned you."

"Well, they wouldn't. They only met me a year and a half ago," Ruby explained. "Dad never told them about me. Caroline knew about me and mom, obviously, but he never told May or Max."

"That's a little weird," Ash commented. Ruby shrugged.

"That's Dad."

"Huh," Ash said. "He seemed. . . normal when I met him."

"Yeah, well," Ruby shrugged, as though it didn't bother him. He tilted his head towards the sleeping figure next to him. "This here is Sapphire. She's fifteen, like Emerald."

"Mmmph," Sapphire mumbled in her sleep. Ruby smiled slightly at her.

"Yeah. Saph's Professor Birch's daughter," Blue added, resting her palms on the back of the sofa. Ruby glanced up at her.

"Why're you talking about _our_ famous parents?" Ruby questioned. "You didn't say anything about Green or Silver."

The room drew its collective breath as Silver's head snapped up and he glared daggers at Ruby. Blue was glaring at Ruby as well.

"Nice going, Ruby," Gold muttered. Ruby flushed and mumbled an apology to Silver.

Ash glanced over at Silver. Silver stared back at him, a strange combination of embarrassed and defiant.

"Well. . . Um. . . Green's grandfather is Professor Oak," Blue said evasively. She paused.

"Quit stalling, Blue," Silver snapped. "Just tell him. He'll find out eventually, anyways."

"And. . . Silver's father is Giovanni," Blue finished. Ash's eyes widened.

"Giovanni? As in the evil-leader-of-Team-Rocket-Giovanni?" Ash asked incredulously. Silver continued to glare at Ash, daring him with his eyes to say anything else about Giovanni.

"Yes, that _exact_ Giovanni," Silver snarled, standing up. His book tumbled to the floor. "You got a problem with that?"

"N-no," Ash said quickly. Pikachu slipped out of Yellow's arms and returned to Ash's shoulder. "I was just clarifying."

"Think whatever you'd like about my father," Silver said, his hands balled into fists at his sides. "But don't let it cloud your judgment of me."

"Silver. . . ," Green started.

"No, Green, don't start," Silver snapped. "I know what you're going to say. I'm just telling the kid that me and Giovanni are different people. Got it?"

"Yeah, I got it," Ash said. He wasn't so sure, though. . .

"Um. . .," Blue ventured. She skipped over to Silver and slung her arm around his waist and pulled him back down onto the sofa. "That's all of us: Me, Red, Green, Yellow, Gold, Silver, Crystal, Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald. The Ten Dex Holders."

"Nice to meet you all," Ash said, still feeling uncomfortable. Pikachu nuzzled the side of Ash's face.

"Augh!"

Everyone looked at Sapphire. She sat bolt upright and rubbed her eyes. "Woahhh, sorry, guys. . . What'd I miss?" Everyone laughed quietly. Sapphire's bright blue eyes found Ash. "Who're you?"

"You sure can break the tension, girl," Gold laughed.

"You've been out for a while, Saph," Ruby said. "That's Ash. Apparently, he's on our side."

"Oh, hello, then," Sapphire greeted him. "Good to meet ya. I hope you're strong. We need all the help we can get."

"I'm okay," Ash said uncomfortably. Sapphire narrowed her eyes and cocked her head.

"Don't be modest," Sapphire commanded. "Are you good, or aren't you?"

"I –"

"He's good," Karen sang, reentering the room. "He took on six of Drake's Gyarados – I dunno, maybe one of them was Clair's – single-handedly. In the pouring rain. On a boat."

Several of the Dex Holders looked at Ash differently now, scrutinizing him. Ash felt as though he were under a microscope. Sapphire stood up and stretched, revealing paint-splattered baggy shorts and a white tank top. She wiggled her toes and complained that her feet had fallen asleep.

"Our meeting's over. There's a kind-of meeting at dinner, though. In the cafeteria. I'll see you all there," Karen waved at Ash as she left the room.

"I still don't like her," Blue muttered.

"Or trust her," Silver added.

"You guys really need to get over that," Red said, leaning his pool cue against the wall. "We can only trust a select few people right now. We'd better trust all of them."

"Or not trust anyone and not be disappointed," Silver countered. Blue nodded in agreement.

"That's a pretty sad way to go through life," Yellow pointed out. "Besides, don't you think she's proven herself trustworthy by now?"

"Dudes, deal with the trust issues later. I'm starved," Gold called as he left the room. The rest of the Dex Holders filed out of the room, the game of Cutthroat forgotten. Ash followed them out.

- . - . - . - . - . - . - . -


	4. Dinner

**Disclaimer**: I still don't own anything.

- . - . - . - . - . - . - . -

Ash followed the ten Dex Holders down the hall to the cafeteria, eavesdropping on their conversations.

"You know, I've been thinking," Green was saying to Red. "I think we need to get serious about our training again. We were really serious about intense training in the beginning, but we've been slacking lately. We can't let our guard down, especially now."

"I agree," Red said musingly. "But the reason we haven't been training hasn't gone away. All of the good training fields are outside, and we can't go outside during daylight. Can't risk them hearing or seeing us."

"But they're changing their tac –"

"Easy, boys, I've got your solution," Blue chimed in. Both boys looked at her skeptically. "I was on duty last night and I did some exploring. I found some pretty sweet training arenas downstairs. It's like a freakin' labyrinth down there. I mean, there's a good few, and I didn't even go that far underground. . ."

"Y'know," Yellow yawned to Crystal, "we've really got to get on fixing that healing machine. Lance and I can't do it all. I mean, it doesn't wipe him out like it does to me, but I'm just to t-t-tired all the time."

"Yeah, you've really gotta be alert," Crystal agreed. "We gotta fix the transporter, too. It's too bad that Professor Oak wasn't able to bring over hardly any of the other Pokémon when he first came. . ."

"I'm starving," Gold complained. "Why do they make us wait so freakin' long for dinner? It's like torture."

"They needed to wait for the Elite meeting to be over," Silver said, rolling his eyes, leaving the implied ending of 'you moron' silent.

"Stop complaining, Gold," Emerald ordered. "We're eating now. You need to be more disciplined."

"I'm with Emerald on this," Silver agreed. "You've got no self-control."

"I do too!"

"I finished your shirt," Ruby said, tossing the orange fabric he'd been working on at Sapphire. "Try to be more careful, will you? I'm running out of thread."

"Thanks," Sapphire said, holding up an orange T-shirt that had, until recently, had a huge rip down the front. "Wow, Ruby, you're good, I can't even tell it was ripped."

"Of course I'm good," Ruby said absently. Sapphire rolled her eyes and pushed him lightly as they walked. "Hey!"

"So," Sapphire began, turning to face Ash. She was now walking backwards down the hall. "You're good, obviously. You took down all of Drake's Gyarados, alone."

"Well," Ash said, glancing at Pikachu, "The training I did in the Sevii Islands with my Pokémon did us a lot of good."

"I'll bet," Ruby said.

"What do you train?" Sapphire demanded. "Like, apart from your Pikachu, what Pokémon have you got with you?"

"Um, I've got Pickahu, Staraptor, Infernape, Torterra, Floatzel, and Gabite."

"Huh. All Sinnoh Pokémon," Sapphire noted. "You from Sinnoh?"

"No," Ash answered. "Sinnoh's just the last region I traveled through."

"So you don't have a set six?" Ruby inquired. Ash shook his head. "That has its good side and its bad side, I suppose."

"How might it be bad?"

"Well, if you're used to switching your Pokémon around –"

"Which I wouldn't guess, 'cause you haven't tried to get any of your other Pokémon in the past two years," Sapphire inserted.

" – you wouldn't be able to, because the transporter's broken," Ruby finished as though Sapphire hadn't spoken.

"Bill's been trying to fix it, but no luck," Sapphire shrugged.

"Hey," Emerald hissed. "Zip it! Lance is trying to talk."

Ash hadn't even noticed that they'd entered the cafeteria. The room was packed to breaking point; he and the Dex Holders were barely inside the door. Lance stood, elevated somehow, at the front of the room.

"I've got some good news and some bad news," Lance began lightly.

"Bad news first!" yelled a familiar voice. Ash grew excited and began scanning the room for her.

"Alright," Lance said easily. "TTT is changing their tactics. While Karen and I made a loop – from here to Cinnabar and back – and we came across a team of Gyarados attacking a ship. Naturally, we looked into it. As you know, we've stopped using ships to transport supplies. Too easy to attack. But it wouldn't make sense for them to TTT to attack their own ships. . . And they didn't. They began an unprovoked attack on a ferryboat from the Sevii Islands."

The room broke out in distressed whispers at this. Clearly, attacking a Sevii ship was some kind of taboo. _Why does it matter that it's a Sevii ship? _Ash wondered, frustrated.

"Does it really matter that it was a Sevii Island ship?" Ash asked the people around him. Yellow nodded.

"The Sevii Islands are neutral. Like, they're not helping anyone, so no one should attack," she explained. "So the fact that TTT is attacking them means they've broadened. They're feeling confident, so they're going to try to get the Sevii Islands on their side."

"By attacking them?" Ash asked, confused. Yellow shrugged. "And what is TTT?"

"It's what we call Team Rocket, Team Aqua, and Team Magma," Yellow answered. "Stands for the Three Tyrannical Teams."

"Yeah, 'cause it's not like there was an easy acronym there," Gold added.

"There was," Silver disagreed. "You just thought that 'MAR,' 'RAM,' and 'ARM' were stupid."

"They are stupid," Gold insisted. "Oh no, ARM is attacking! You think people would take that seriously?"

"Shut up!" Emerald ordered.

"Furthermore, the Pokémon were attacking in the same style as Hoenn Elite Four's Drake," Lance continued. "Which leads us to assume that he's finally joined them, and he's taking action."

A chorus of groans rang through the vast room. Lance held his hand up for silence, which he got.

"I promised there was good news coming," Lance reminded them. "Though all of this new information about TTT and Drake is disturbing, some good came from discovering it. Apart from the fact that we know it now."

Lance paused.

"We met a boy on that ship," Lance said. "He fought the Gyarados valiantly. He showed a lot of talent. And he has agreed to help us fight against TTT!"

There was a cheer at this, as well as pronounced wonderings at who the newcomer was. Many of the Dex Holders were staring at Ash, who flushed.

"Who is it?" yelled that same familiar voice. Ash grinned. _She was here!_

"Easy, Misty," Lance smiled slightly. "You know I like a little bit of suspense."

"C'mon!"

"Ash? Can you come up here?" Lance called.

"Ash?" his name rang through the room. Some who spoke the name were confused, some excited, some dubious. Ash pushed his way through the crowd and made his way to Lance, who was just standing on a table. Lance pulled Ash to stand beside him.

"Ash!" several distinct voices yelled. "It's really you!"

The girl Ash had been looking for since he'd heard her voice sprinted to the front of the room, shoving people out of her way. She leapt onto the table and hugged him tightly. "God! I thought you were dead, Ash! No one's heard from you since it started. . . I thought. . . I thought. . . ," Misty cried into his neck. She pulled back and smacked his arm as hard as she could. "Never do that again!"

"Sorry, Misty," Ash grinned, ignoring the throbbing of his arm. Pikachu leapt off of Ash's shoulder into Misty's waiting arms. "Didn't mean to worry you."

"You didn't _worry_ –"

"Thank God, thank God!" another voice screeched. Ash looked over Misty's head (his growth spurt finally put him about a head taller than her) and was swallowed by his mother's embrace. "Ash! You're alive!"

"Mom!"

"Hey, let them have their reunion in peace. Get some food," Lance told the room. They obliged. Lance jumped off the table and walked into the crowd. "Hey, Emerald, can I talk to you for just a sec?"

"Ash!" Ash turned and saw Brock hurrying to him, May and Dawn close on his heels.

"Hi, guys!" Ash exclaimed. They reached him, and he hugged his three friends one by one. "I've missed you all."

"Well, we all thought you were dead," May pointed out. "I think we win in the 'missing you' category."

"Where the hell have you been?" his mother demanded.

"Training in the Sevii Islands, mom!" Ash said. "You already knew that!"

"It's easy to forget details like that when you're at war," Dawn said tiredly. Ash looked at her. "Long time, no see, Ash."

War had clearly had its affect on Dawn. She barely even looked like herself. Her dark blue hair was longer than it had ever been, and it was tangled and dirty. She kept it tied back in a ponytail now. She had dark purple circles under her eyes, and she looked as though she'd traveled to the end of the earth and back. The happy-go-lucky glint that had always been in her eyes was gone, replaced by deep and obvious stress and misery. His other friends looked tougher, but not nearly so drastically changed. May still wore her hair in low pigtails, and Misty still had her side ponytail. The only obvious different Ash could see was that both girls looked as though they'd seen more of battle than they'd ever wanted to. Brock's hair was longer, and his face looked hardened, but otherwise he looked the same. His mother just looked exhausted.

"Dawn, are you alright?" Ash asked quietly.

"I'll leave you to catch up," Delia said. She hugged Ash again, and placed an arm around Dawn before she started to walk away. "But young man, you'd better find me later."

"I will, mom."

"Dawn?" Ash prompted once his mother had walked away. Dawn shrugged.

"I've. . . been better," Dawn answered, tears filling her eyes. May put a comforting arm around her shoulder.

"Her mother was found dead last week," May answered Ash softly. Dawn's shoulder's heaved, and she cried into May's shirt. Ash's mouth fell open in horror. "She went back to Sinnoh for something. . . Trip T found her. . . They knew she was on our side. . ."

"How. . .," Ash began in revulsion. He swallowed. "How can they be so cruel?"

"Th-that's not all of it," Dawn hiccupped, pulling herself back together. "They t-tortured her first. For information on us. Our headquarters. . . Our plans. . . She wouldn't give in, and she just c-couldn't t-take the st-strain. . ."

Ash was speechless. He hadn't guessed the war was that serious from how the Dex Holders were behaving earlier. _I should have known,_ Ash thought angrily, grinding his teeth. _I need to prepared._

"Dawn," Ash said hoarsely. "I'm so sorry."

"Yeah," Dawn whispered. "Me, too."

"What about the rest of you?" Ash asked, mentally preparing himself for the worst.

"Well, I made my parents take my brothers and sisters to the Sevii Islands when I knew this was starting," Brock stated. "They didn't want to go, any of them. But it's too dangerous here."

"And my whole family's here," May said. "Me, mom, dad, Max. . . And Ruby."

She said the last bit sounding very unsure of herself.

"He seems nice," Ash offered.

"Oh, he is," May said quickly. "Really, he's very nice. It's just that. . . I always had a big brother that no one told me about? There was always a brother I never got to meet? It was too much to handle at first. I couldn't talk to mom and dad for a while. . . Mostly dad, though. But it's better now. He spends almost all his time with his friends, but I see him sometimes. We're getting to know each other. . . Kind of."

"That's good, May," Ash said. May nodded and rubbed Dawn's arm. Ash glanced at Misty, who'd been very quiet. "How about you, Mist?"

"Well, I know my sisters are okay," Misty said, trying to sound matter of fact. "Daisy's here, somewhere. Probably with Bill, or someone. Violet and Lily are fine too, as far as I know."

"As far as you know?" Ash repeated, confused.

"Tell him the truth, Misty," Brock said. Misty narrowed her eyes at Brock.

"Violet and Lily are on the other side."

"_What_?" Ash gasped. "_Your_ sisters? On _their_ side?"

"Well, they're not very strong-willed," Misty admitted. "They'd rather be on the side with power. If they win, that is."

"It makes sense," Brock said to Ash, as May, Misty, and Dawn already knew. "If they win, Misty's sisters will be fine. If we win, they won't suffer as many consequences. If they win. . . Well, it won't be so good for us."

"They won't win!" Ash said fiercely. His friends looked at him pityingly. "What? We won't back down!"

"Ash, you've gotta be realistic," Misty said. "Optimism doesn't help us."

"There's no guarantee that we're going to have a happy ending," Dawn agreed. "Trust me, Ash. This is coming from the girl you knew as the eternal optimist. We could very easily lose this war."

"That doesn't mean we'll stop fighting, though," May assured Ash. "C'mon. I'm starving. Let's get some food."

- . - . - . -

Red watched as Ash and his friends wended their way through the cafeteria to get something to eat.

"What do you think of him?" Red asked in a low voice, nodding his head in Ash's direction. Green followed his gaze.

"I don't know," Green said honestly, folding his arms. "Gary's mentioned him to me a few times over the years. Apparently he's good. Good enough to beat Gary, at least. But I'm reserving judgment, at least until I see him battle."

"I like him," Blue said. She watched Ash with her chin in her hand. "He seems nice."

"You don't know him at all," Green scoffed. "You're going to trust your life with him 'cause he seems nice?"

"I didn't know you at all either, at first," Blue countered. "You've gotta give people a chance."

"Hypocrite," Green shot back. "You haven't given Karen a chance."

"That's different," Blue argued. "I have reason not to trust her. So does Silver. Hell, so do the rest of you! She worked for the Masked Man, have you forgotten that?"

"Trusting the wrong people right now can end in disaster," Ruby pointed out, cutting off what was sure to be a huge fight between Blue and Green.

"But look at that," Yellow inserted, pointing across the room the where Ash and his friends stood. "Brock and Misty both know him. We trust both of them. Ruby, your sister knows him, and – "

"Half-sister," Ruby corrected her. "And I don't actually know her that well."

"Puh-lease," Sapphire rolled her eyes. "When are you going to get over yourself? He didn't pick her over you."

"Excuse _me_, but –"

"Whatever," Yellow said. "Regardless, he's talking to Professor Oak, too. And we all definitely trust him. So we can trust Ash transitively. Besides, he seems like a good person to me."

"He didn't seem that bad," Silver agreed, surprising everyone. He looked at them one by one. "Oh, what? I know a lot of you thought that about my father at first. Even I did. And clearly he knows Team Rocket and how bad they are if he knows Giovanni. So, I'm with Yellow. We trust people that trust him. I think he's okay."

"Well," Sapphire said. "I'm going to try. To trust him, I mean. It's too risky not to."

"You've got that backwards," Gold disagreed with his mouth full. "It's too risky to trust him blindly."

"Gross," Crystal said to Gold. "Swallow your food. And I agree with Sapphire. We need to believe in the people that are on our side, 'cause God knows it's not as many as they have."

"What about you, Em?" Ruby asked the blonde boy. "You've been quiet."

"Well," Emerald said after a pause, each word measured. "I think that trusting him implicitly is dangerous. Because even though we trust people he knows, we don't know _him_ at all. But I don't see that we have much of a choice. We have to trust him."

"So, Em, Saph, Chris, Yellow, Silver, and I are all gonna try to trust him. Why don't you four trust him?"

"I didn't say I _didn't_ trust him," Ruby said. "Just have some reservations. 'Cause Em's right – we don't know him at all."

"And I think he's fine," Gold shrugged. "I was just pointing out that Saph was wrong."

"How kind," Sapphire said dryly.

"No problem," Gold said. "I agree with Ruby, though. I say trust him with reservations. We don't know him, it's true, but we gotta give him a chance to earn our trust."

"I'm not saying I'll never trust the kid," Green said. "But I'm taking my time to decide how much and how quickly I'll trust him."

"Red?" Blue prompted. "How about you?"

"Hmm?" Red hummed. He looked away from Ash and back at Blue. "Oh, I guess I'm just more paranoid than I used to be. It's nothing on Ash, specifically. It's just harder for me to trust new people now. Y'know?"

"Word," Gold agreed as he stuffed bread into his mouth. Crystal looked at him with distaste.

"You are disgusting," Crystal informed him. Gold shrugged.

"Yeah, but you like me," Gold winked. "So don't expect me to change any time soon."

"Ew."

"Oh, yeah!" Emerald said suddenly. Nine pairs of eyes flicked to him. "I forgot to mention earlier. We've got a meeting with Lance after dinner. Meets in one of those tiny conference rooms no one uses at nine."

"What? Why?" Yellow asked curiously. Emerald shrugged.

"He didn't say."

"Who's going to be there?" Ruby asked.

"Just us, I think," Emerald said. "And Lance."

"I hope it's good news," Sapphire said worriedly. "I just can't take any more bad news. . ."

- . - . - . - . - . - . - . -


End file.
